New work on nanorobotics design, simulation and control for nanomedicine

A follow up to a group working on nanorobots for nanomedicine

The researchers have new papers: Nanorobot hardware architecture for Medical Defense

This work presents a new approach with details on the integrated platform and hardware architecture for nanorobots application in epidemic control, which should enable real time in vivo prognosis of biohazard infection. The recent developments in the field of nanoelectronics, with transducers progressively shrinking down to smaller sizes through nanotechnology and carbon nanotubes, are expected to result in innovative biomedical instrumentation possibilities, with new therapies and efficient diagnosis methodologies. The use of integrated systems, smart biosensors, and programmable nanodevices are advancing nanoelectronics, enabling the progressive research and development of molecular machines. It should provide high precision pervasive biomedical monitoring with real time data transmission.The use of nanobioelectronics as embedded systems is the natural pathway towards manufacturing methodology to achieve nanorobot applications out of laboratories sooner as possible. To demonstrate the practical application of medical nanorobotics, a 3D simulation based on clinical data addresses how to integrate communication with nanorobots using RFID, mobile phones, and satellites, applied to long distance ubiquitous surveillance and health monitoring for troops in conflict zones. Therefore, the current model can also be used to prevent and save a population against the case of some targeted epidemic disease.

They have a lot of papers and work at their site on nanorobotics design, control and 3d simulation

Current developments in nanoelectronics [Appenzeller, J.; Martel, R.; Derycke, V.; Rodasavljevic, M.; Wind, S.; Neumayer, D.; Avouris, P. Carbon nanotubes as potential building blocks for future nanoelectronics. Microelectron. Eng. 2002, 64 (1), 391–397.] and nanobiotechnology [Liu, J.-Q.; Shimohara, K. Molecular computation and evolutionary wetware: a cutting-edge technology for artificial life and nanobiotechnologies. IEEE Trans. Syst. Man Cybern. Part C- Appl. Rev. 2007, 37 (3), 325–336. ] are providing feasible development pathways to enable molecular machine manufacturing, including embedded and integrated devices, which can comprise the main sensing, actuation, data transmission, remote control uploading, and coupling power supply subsystems, addressing the basics for operation of medical nanorobots.
A recent actuator with biologically-based components has been proposed [Xiong, P.; Molnar, S.V.; Moerland, T.S., Hong, S.; Chase, P.B. Biomolecular-based actuator.
7014823US 2006, Mar. ]. This actuator has a mobile member that moves substantially linearly as a result of a biomolecular interaction between biologically-based components within the actuator. Such actuators can be utilized in nanoscale mechanical devices to pump fluids, open and close valves, or to provide translational movement. To help control nanorobot position, a system for tracking an object in space can comprise a transponder device connectable to the object. The transponder device has one or several transponder antennas through which a transponder circuit receives an RF (radio frequency) signal. The transponder device adds a known delay to the RF signal, thereby producing RF response for transmitting through the transponder antenna [Laroche, J.-L. RF system for tracking objects. 20060250300US 2006, Nov]. A series of several transmitters and antennas allow a position calculator, associated with the transmitters and receivers, to calculate the position of the object as a function of the known delay, and the time period between the emission of the RF signal and the reception of the RF response from the first, second and third antennas. Nanotechnology is moving fast towards nanoelectronics fabrication. Chemically assembled electronic nanotechnology provides an alternative to using complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) for constructing circuits with feature sizes in the tens of nanometers [. Goldstein, S.C.; Rosewater, D.L. Methods of chemically assembled electronic nanotechnology circuit fabrication. 7064000US 2006, Jun. ]. A CMOS component can be configured in a semiconductor substrate as part of the circuit assembly [Ramcke, T.; Rosner, W.; Risch, L. Circuit configuration having at least one nanoelectronic component and a method for fabricating the component. 6442042US 2002, Aug. ]. An insulating layer is configured on the semiconductor substrate, which covers the CMOS component. A nanoelectronic component can be configured above an insulating layer. If several nanoelectronic components are provided, they are preferably grouped in nanocircuit block.

This work used a 3D approach to show how nanorobots can effectively improve health care and medical defense. Nanorobots should enable innovative real time protection against pandemic outbreaks. The use of nanomechatronics techniques and computational nanotechnology can help in the process of transducers investigation and in defining strategies to integrate nanorobot capabilities. A better comprehension about the requirements a nanorobot should address, in order to be successfully used for in vivo instrumentation, is a key issue for the fast development of medical nanorobotics. Details on current advances on nanobioelectronics were used to highlight pathways to achieve nanorobots as an integrated molecular machine for nanomedicine. Moreover, based on achievements and trends in nanotechnology, new materials, photonics, and proteomics, a new investigation methodology, using clinical data, numerical analysis and 3D simulation, has provided a nanorobot hardware architecture with real time integrated platform for practical long distance medical monitoring. This model can enable nanorobots as innovative biohazard defense technology.

In the 3D simulation, the nanorobots were able to efficiently detect alpha-NAGA signals in the bloodstream, with the integrated system retrieving information about a person infected with influenza. The model provided details on design for manufacturability, major control interface requirements, and inside body biomolecular sensing for practical development and application of nanorobots in medical
prognosis.

The use of nanorobots for in vivo monitoring chemical parameters should significantly increase fast strategic decisions. Thus, nanorobot for medical defense means an effective way to avoid an aggressive pandemic disease to spread into an outbreak. As a direct impact, it should also help public health sectors to save lives and decrease high medical costs, enabling a real time quarantine action. An important and interesting aspect in the current development is the fact that, the similar architecture presented in terms of hardware and platform integration, can also be used to detect most types of biohazard contaminants.

FURTHER READING
Nanorobot hardware articles